Inhibition of TNF‐α‐induced ROS generation, VCAM‐1 expression and NF‐κB activation by chloroform extract of aged black garlic in human umbilical vein endothelial cells

The current study investigated if the chloroform extract of aged black garlic (CEABG) could attenuate the activities of adhesion molecules in tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α)‐stimulated human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). The study was performed on HUVECs that were pretreated with 30 μg/ml of CEABG before TNF‐α treatment. When pretreatment of HUVEC with CEABG for 30 min, CEABG suppressed reactive oxygen species (ROS) production induced by TNF‐α. HUVECs treated with CEABG exhibited remarkably suppressed TNF‐α‐induced mRNA expression of VCAM‐1, but little alteration in ICAM‐1 and E‐selectin mRNA expression. CEABG treatment also significantly decreased the TNF‐α‐induced cell surface and total protein expression of VCAM‐1 without affecting ICAM‐1 and E‐selectin expression. Furthermore, CEABG significantly inhibited NF‐κB transcription factor activation in TNF‐α‐stimulated HUVECs. Collectively, our findings suggest that CEABG can be an efficient new anti‐inflammatory agent. It may have a potential therapeutic use for the prevention and treatment of vascular disease such as atherosclerosis.